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Southeast Notes: Highsmith, Ware, Risacher, Skyhawks, Sarr

November 7th, 2024 at 5:32pm CST by Tristan Tucker

The Heat‘s starting lineup of Terry Rozier, Tyler Herro, Jimmy Butler, Nikola Jovic and Bam Adebayo is being outscored by 16.6 points per 100 possessions through seven games this season. With the team struggling in third quarters, coach Erik Spoelstra made the decision to sub in Haywood Highsmith for Jovic to open the second half against Phoenix on Wednesday, as noted by Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald.

“[Highsmith] had given us good minutes in that first half, and we were looking to do something just to change the energy of these third quarters. It had nothing to do with Niko,” Spoelstra said of the change.

Highsmith went on to score 19 points off the bench while Jovic only played five minutes for the game. Despite Highsmith’s success, Spoelstra didn’t indicate whether it would be a permanent change moving forward, instead noting the fluidity of the lineup from game to game.

“I wouldn’t say I was surprised,” Jovic said. “Lately, the first unit has been struggling a little bit and I guess coach was trying to find the right matchups. [Highsmith] did a good job against KD in the first half. Coach told me before we went out that he’s going to play him and just stay ready.”

Jovic has started all seven of the Heat’s games to begin the year and has averaged 7.4 points and 3.9 rebounds in 19.3 minutes per contest. Highsmith is averaging just 6.4 MPG and has received a pair of DNP-CDs thus far. Highsmith re-signed with the Heat on a two-year, $10.8MM deal this summer despite drawing interest from other teams.

“I’m, in a sense, used to this,” Highsmith said. “Some games, I might not be in the rotation or I might be in the rotation. I’m always going to be ready no matter what.”

The Heat next play on Friday night against Denver. The starting power forward position will be something to monitor for Miami moving forward.

We have more from the Southeast Division:

The starting four spot wasn’t the only Heat lineup change, as rookie center Kel’el Ware earned rotation minutes over Thomas Bryant for the first time this season, Ira Winderman of South Florida’s Sun Sentinel observes. Ware played over 13 minutes and recorded seven points, three rebounds, two steals and a block. Bryant had played every game for the Heat before Wednesday’s outing, averaging 4.8 PPG and 3.8 RPG.
Hawks No. 1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher had the best game of his young career on Wednesday, recording career highs of 33 points, seven rebounds, three assists, three steals and two blocks, as noted by ESPN. Risacher’s big game puts him right back into consideration for Rookie of the Year in the early weeks of the season, as he maintained the confidence to keep shooting despite entering the game making just 32.9% of his field goal attempts thus far. That confidence paid off with a 61.1% shooting night on Wednesday. “[Head coach Quin Snyder] basically tells me to shoot the f—ing ball,” this year’s No. 1 pick said. “That’s not just from him. That’s from everybody on the coaching staff and my teammates. It helps with my confidence.“
The Hawks‘ G League affiliate, the College Park Skyhawks, announced its opening night roster, Lauren L. Williams of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets. Former NBA players Tony Bradley and Kevon Harris help make up the roster, while two-way players Dominick Barlow, Seth Lundy and Keaton Wallace will likely spend time with the Skyhawks. No. 43 overall pick Nikola Djurisic, who suffered a foot injury and is rehabbing, is on the roster and will continue to develop and recover.
According to Chase Hughes of Monumental Sports Network, Wizards No. 2 overall pick Alex Sarr is off to one of the best shot-blocking starts ever for a first-year player. Sarr became the first rookie since 1993 to have multiple blocks in each of his first six NBA games. The center is averaging 9.8 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per night and has recorded 11 total blocks in his last three outings.

Largest Trade Exceptions Available This Season

November 6th, 2024 at 2:40pm CST by Luke Adams

Ahead of the NBA’s 2025 trade deadline, it’s worth keeping in mind which teams hold traded player exceptions that could come in handy to grease the wheels on an in-season deal.

As we explain in our glossary, a traded player exception allows a team to take on salary in a trade without sending out any salary in return. The amount of the exception (plus $250K for non-apron teams) is the amount of salary the team is permitted to take back without salary-matching – either in a single deal or in multiple trades – for one year.

For instance, a team with a $10MM trade exception could acquire a player earning $4MM and a second player earning $6MM without having to worry about sending out any outgoing salary.

In recent years, sizable traded player exceptions have served as wild cards that helped accommodate both pre-deadline and offseason deals. For example, after creating a $9.5MM trade exception when they sent Royce O’Neale to the Suns ahead of the 2024 trade deadline, the Nets used that TPE to acquire Ziaire Williams and a future draft pick in an offseason trade that allowed Memphis to shed some salary.

Many trade exceptions expire without being used, but as our tracker shows, there are several sizable ones available this season that could be useful when trade season begins in earnest.

Here are the 15 biggest trade exceptions around the NBA for now, along with their expiry dates in parentheses:

Atlanta Hawks: $25,266,266 (7/7/25)
Brooklyn Nets: $23,300,000 (7/7/25)
Chicago Bulls: $17,506,232 (7/8/25)
Dallas Mavericks: $16,193,183 (7/7/25)
Memphis Grizzlies: $12,600,000 (2/3/25)
Washington Wizards: $12,402,000 (2/10/25)
New Orleans Pelicans: $9,900,000 (7/7/25)
Minnesota Timberwolves: $8,780,488 (7/7/25)
Portland Trail Blazers: $6,875,000 (7/7/25)
Miami Heat: $6,477,319 (1/23/25)
Sacramento Kings: $6,341,464 (6/30/25)
Memphis Grizzlies: $6,133,005 (7/21/25)
Sacramento Kings: $5,893,768 (7/8/25)
New Orleans Pelicans: $5,722,116 (1/17/25)
Denver Nuggets: $5,250,000 (7/7/25)

A number of these trade exceptions are more likely to be used next offseason, when teams could have more cap flexibility, than during the current season, when so many clubs are within spitting distance of the luxury tax line or a hard cap.

For example, using even a small portion of that $25MM+ exception during the season would push the Hawks‘ team salary into tax territory, but with several contracts coming off their books next summer, they’d be in a better position to take on a big salary at that time.

The exceptions that expire before next offseason are the ones to watch more closely during the season. That $12MM+ Wizards TPE is especially intriguing, since Washington is one of the few teams with plenty of breathing room below the tax threshold. They could use nearly all of that exception at the deadline and still avoid becoming a taxpayer.

The two TPEs listed in italics can’t be used at all, since the Heat are currently operating over the first tax apron, while the Timberwolves are over the second apron. Apron teams are prohibited from using trade exceptions that were generated during the prior season (like Miami’s) or that were created by sending out a player via sign-and-trade (like Minnesota’s).

It’s worth noting that some of these exceptions may be used in a deal that could otherwise be completed using salary matching. For example, a team with a $12MM trade exception that swaps one $10MM player for another could use the exception to take on the incoming player and create a new $10MM exception using the outgoing player.

Given tax and apron considerations, we may see some deals along those lines during the season, since using a TPE in that manner would allow a team to essentially roll it over for another year.

Southeast Notes: Da Silva, Daniels, Mann, Sarr

November 4th, 2024 at 11:48am CST by Luke Adams

Although the Magic are devastated by the oblique injury that will sideline rising star Paolo Banchero for the foreseeable future, the team has managed to find one silver lining, according to Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel, who writes that first-round pick Tristan Da Silva is has gotten the opportunity to play a role with Banchero on the shelf. After four straight DNP-CDs, the rookie had 17 points and five rebounds in 20 minutes of action during Friday’s loss to Cleveland.

“I just think that was a bright spot there, for him to be able to come in and step in and do the things he was able to do,” head coach Jamahl Mosley said after that game.

Mosley was impressed enough with Da Silva’s performance to insert him into Orlando’s starting lineup on Sunday in Dallas. The former Colorado standout wasn’t quite as effective, with just seven points and five rebounds in 31 minutes, though he was only a minus-four in a game the Magic lost by 23 points.

Da Silva earned praise from teammate Franz Wagner, who said it’s been “a lot of fun” playing alongside his rookie teammate and that he’s doing a “great job” so far (Twitter link via Beede).

“I thought he played awesome in Cleveland,” Wagner said. “He’s just keeping the game really simple, making easy plays, and he just understands the game really well. And knows how to play. (He) takes the shot when he’s open, makes a quick decision when he gets it.”

Here’s more from around the Southeast:

Facing their former team in New Orleans on Sunday, Hawks guard Dyson Daniels and big man Larry Nance Jr. both stared down the Pelicans‘ bench after making big shots, notes Lauren Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. While one of Daniels’ gestures toward the bench after a corner three resembled a finger gun (Twitter video link), he told reporters after the game that wasn’t his intent, writes Brett Martel of The Associated Press. “It might have looked like it, but I was just telling them it was worth three points,” Daniels said. “You know, pointing at them all, that’s all it was. I was making sure they all knew how many points it was worth.” As Martel observes, the NBA has fined players in the past for mimicking guns on the court.
While he saw his playing time dwindle during his two-and-a-half seasons in Oklahoma City, point guard Tre Mann said his time playing alongside Thunder ball-handlers like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Josh Giddey helped him learn how to play off the ball more effectively, which has benefited him since his trade to the Hornets. “That helped me develop my all-around game, like making plays other than scoring, being ready to shoot on catch-and-shoots, and hunting those opportunities,” Mann told Grant Afseth of Sportskeeda.com. “Now, playing with guys like LaMelo (Ball) and Brandon (Miller), I can still have an impact even without the ball.” Mann is off to a strong start this fall, having averaged 19.2 points per game on .467/.444/1.000 shooting in six appearances off the bench.
No. 2 overall pick Alex Sarr got off to a bumpy start this season, averaging 8.0 PPG on 29.7% shooting through his first four games, but Saturday’s showing vs. Miami (17 points on 7-of-11 shooting, six rebounds, four blocks, three assists) provided a glimpse of what the Wizards hope he can become, writes Varun Shankar of The Washington Post. “I think it’s just me getting more comfortable as the games go on, realizing where I can attack, how I can be impactful and just transform my game,” Sarr said.

Hard Caps Loom As Potential Obstacles For At Least Three NBA Teams

November 2nd, 2024 at 1:03pm CST by Luke Adams

Over half of the NBA's 30 teams face some sort of hard cap for the rest of the 2024/25 league year. A total of 14 clubs are hard-capped at the first tax apron ($178,132,000) as a result of moves they made on the trade market or in free agency, while three more are hard-capped at the second tax apron ($188,931,000).

Those teams won't be permitted to surpass their respective hard caps for any reason for the rest of '24/25, and it's entirely possible - likely, actually - that more clubs will join them on that list as they finalize in-season signings and trades in the coming months. Just a couple weeks ago, the Grizzlies became the 17th team to get hard-capped when they used a portion of their non-taxpayer mid-level exception to sign Scotty Pippen Jr.

[RELATED: How NBA Teams Become Hard-Capped]

However, in most cases, a hard cap doesn't actually serve as a material obstacle for a team. For instance, the Hornets are currently hard-capped at the first apron, but their team salary for apron purposes is more than $16MM below that threshold.

While the Hornets could take on some additional salary in a pre-deadline trade, it's extremely hard to imagine a scenario in which they surpass the luxury tax line ($170,814,000), let alone approach their $178MM+ hard cap. Certainly, Charlotte's front office should be aware of that hard cap over the course of the season, but it shouldn't be a front-of-mind concern that would prevent the team from pulling the trigger on any moves it realistically wants to make.

Not every team can afford to approach its hard cap like the Hornets though. For a handful of clubs, the hard cap will be a day-to-day consideration that affects a team's ability to sign a free agent, make a trade, or even carry a full 15-man roster.

Let's take a closer look at which teams have to be most aware of their hard caps over the course of the 2024/25 league year.

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International Notes: French Rookies, Yao, Mannion, Larkin, More

November 1st, 2024 at 3:02pm CST by Rory Maher

French teenagers Zaccharie Risacher (Hawks), Alex Sarr (Wizards) and Tidjane Salaün (Hornets), who were selected first, second and sixth overall in June’s draft, have gotten off to slow starts to begin their NBA careers, per John Hollinger of The Athletic. Risacher (.354/.238/.583 shooting line) and Sarr (.297/.238/.833) are struggling with offensive efficiency, while Salaün isn’t yet a regular member of Charlotte’s rotation.

As Hollinger writes, that outcome was always expected, as all three players were viewed as relatively raw prospects, drafted more for what they could be than what they are now. While Risacher and Sarr have shown promising flashes on defense, they’ve also struggled with the size and strength of the NBA, something Risacher’s teammate Bogdan Bogdanovic is familiar with, having played in Serbia and Turkey before signing his first NBA contract.

“Athleticism in the NBA is very different,” Bogdanovic said. “There is not a league on the planet where you can see this type of length, athleticism and talent on the floor. Just adjusting to the speed of the games and the pace.”

Hollinger asked Risacher about his early adjustment to the league in training camp, and the 19-year-old was modest in his reply.

“Back in France I was super athletic, and now I’m just a regular dude,” Risacher said.

Time will tell whether or not the three rookies will become impact players in the NBA, but for now, their teams will have to be patient as they develop, Hollinger notes.

Here are a few more international notes:

Hall-of-Famer Yao Ming has resigned from his role as president of the Chinese Basketball Association, as Johnny Askounis of Eurohoops relays. Yao, who played NBA nine seasons with the Rockets, was president of the CBA for the past seven years.
Former NBA guard Nico Mannion is signing a three-year contract with Italy’s Olimpia Milano, reports Alessandro Maggi of Sportando. Mannion’s current club, Pallacanestro, will receive a buyout of €300,000. Mannion’s NBA rights are controlled by Golden State, the team that selected him No. 48 overall in 2020. The 23-year-old spent the 2020/21 season on a two-way deal with the Warriors and would be a restricted free agent upon his return to the NBA as long as Golden State keeps issuing him two-way qualifying offers.
Former first-round pick Shane Larkin will return to the Turkish national team for the 2025 EuroBasket tournament, according to Eurohoops. Head coach Ergin Ataman recently announced the news in a podcast appearance, adding that another nationalized citizen, Scottie Wilbekin, will be on the roster as well. It’s unclear if Wilbekin will actually be ready to play by next summer, as he suffered a torn ACL this fall.
NBA veterans Bruno Caboclo and Patrick Beverley are currently playing in Israel with Hapoel Tel Aviv, but they’re both drawing interest from EuroLeague clubs, according to Maggi. Caboclo has reportedly received a contract offer from Real Madrid, which has multiple players sidelined by injuries. The Spanish powerhouse may be eyeing Beverley as well, though it’s unclear if he’s open to leaving his current team.

Hawks Pick Up Options On Daniels, Bufkin; Will Decline Roddy’s

October 30th, 2024 at 3:17pm CST by Luke Adams

The Hawks have exercised their 2025/26 rookie scale team options on guards Dyson Daniels and Kobe Bufkin, the team announced today in a press release.

Daniels, 21, spent his first two NBA seasons in New Orleans before being sent to Atlanta over the summer in the Dejounte Murray deal. Known as a talented perimeter defender, the 21-year-old has shown signs of taking a step forward offensively during his first few games as a Hawk, averaging 12.8 points per game on 50.0% shooting (35.3% on three-pointers). He’s also averaging 2.8 steals per contest.

The eighth overall pick in the 2022 draft, Daniels is now under contract through 2025/26 and will be a restricted free agent after that season if he doesn’t sign a rookie scale extension during the 2025 offseason. He’s earning about $6.06MM in 2024/25, while his ’25/26 option is worth $7,707,709.

Bufkin’s NBA career has been plagued by injuries since he was selected with the 15th overall pick in the 2023 draft. The 6’5″ guard appeared in just 17 games for the Hawks as a rookie and is on the shelf again this fall due to a right shoulder ailment.

However, Atlanta remains bullish enough on his potential to lock in the 21-year-old’s $4,503,720 salary for the 2025/26 season. The team will have to decide by October 31, 2025 whether or not to exercise Bufkin’s fourth-year option for ’26/27.

Daniels and Bufkin are two of the three Hawks with rookie scale team options for 2025/26. According to Brad Rowland of Locked on Hawks (Twitter link), the club won’t pick up its option on forward David Roddy, which would have been worth $4,831,766.

Passing on that option will put Roddy on track to become an unrestricted free agent during the 2025 offseason. At that time, the Hawks (or whichever team has Roddy on its roster to end the season) won’t be permitted to offer him a starting salary above his declined option salary, though rival suitors would be able to exceed that figure.

A bulky 6’4″ forward, Roddy is playing for his third NBA team. He began his career with the Grizzlies, then was sent to Phoenix at the 2024 trade deadline in the three-time Royce O’Neale trade. The former 23rd overall pick was subsequently flipped to Atlanta this past offseason in a cost-cutting move by the Suns.

Roddy has appeared in 137 total regular season games at the NBA level, averaging 6.6 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in 18.1 minutes per contest, with a shooting line of .420/.303/.659.

Southeast Notes: Banchero, Hawks, Kuzma, Coulibaly, Wizards, Hornets

October 30th, 2024 at 9:00am CST by Luke Adams

The Magic are off to a strong 3-1 start this season, led by forward Paolo Banchero, who ranks first on the team in points (28.5 PPG) and assists (6.0 APG) and second in rebounds (9.3 RPG).

Banchero filled up the stat sheet on Monday in the best game of his career, compiling 50 points, 13 rebounds, and nine assists in a narrow home victory over Indiana. The 21-year-old became the youngest player to record at least 50 points and 10 rebounds in a game since LeBron James did it at age 20 in March 2005, writes Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel.

“It was one of those games where you’re just watching and you’re coaching but you’re sitting there just enjoying his process and watching a great player perform,” Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley said.

Orlando exercised its fourth-year option for the 2025/26 season on Banchero earlier this month. That option will guarantee the former No. 1 overall pick a $15.3MM salary next season, but his continued ascent puts him on track for a much larger payday in the not-too-distant future — he’ll be eligible for a rookie scale extension beginning in July 2025 and seems likely to receive a maximum-salary offer from the Magic at that time.

Here’s more from around the Southeast:

The Hawks‘ depth is being tested just one week into the 2024/25 season, writes Lauren L. Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Atlanta issued injury updates on four players on Tuesday and also didn’t have Onyeka Okongwu (left big toe injury management) or De’Andre Hunter (right knee inflammation) available for Monday’s loss to Washington. The good news is that Okongwu isn’t on the injury report for Wednesday’s rematch in D.C., while Hunter is considered questionable.
Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma sustained a right groin strain in Monday’s game against Atlanta, according to the team (Twitter link). While it’s unclear how much time he might miss as a result of the injury, Kuzma has been ruled out at least for Wednesday’s rematch vs. the Hawks.
Four rival NBA talent evaluators who spoke to Josh Robbins of The Athletic about 2023 lottery pick Bilal Coulibaly are intrigued by his potential but view the Wizards forward as someone whose future is difficult to project. “I’m not ruling him in or out in terms of whether he was a good pick. (It’s) too soon,” one scout said. “But I’d say the arrow’s pointing upward.”
The Wizards‘ and Hornets‘ G League affiliates have formally announced their training camp rosters. The Capital City Go-Go’s squad includes former NBA lottery pick Kira Lewis Jr. and five-year NBA veteran Jaylen Nowell, while 10-year NBA veteran Kent Bazemore is the most notable name in camp with the Greensboro Swarm.

Hawks’ Bogdanovic, Bufkin, Krejci Will Be Out Multiple Weeks

October 29th, 2024 at 5:26pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Hawks wing Bogdan Bogdanovic will be sidelined for at least a month, the team announced in a press release on Tuesday.

Bogdanovic underwent a non-surgical procedure on Monday. He missed the team’s game on Sunday with what the team labelled right hamstring tendinopathy. He will be reevaluated in approximately four weeks.

The team also provided updates on three other players.

Guard Kobe Bufkin (right shoulder subluxation) has begun treatment and rehabilitation. Like Bogdanovic, he will be reevaluated in approximately four weeks. Bufkin suffered a partially dislocated shoulder in practice last week.

Guard/forward Vit Krejci sustained a right adductor strain during Monday’s game against Washington. He will be reevaluated in two weeks.

Guard Dyson Daniels has a right hip flexor strain, which also occurred on Monday. He’s out for Wednesday’s game at Washington and will continue to receive treatment.

The news regarding Bogdanovic, who is in the second year of a four-year, $68MM contract, is the most significant. He averaged a career-best 16.9 points, 3.4 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.2 steals last season while appearing in 79 games. He’s one of the top three-point shooters in the league, making 38.4% for his career.

The injuries on the backcourt and wing will mean more playing time for Garrison Mathews and Keaton Wallace.

Hawks Being Cautious With Bogdan Bogdanovic

October 28th, 2024 at 10:01am CST by Arthur Hill

Hawks guard Bogdan Bogdanovic missed Sunday’s game with right hamstring tendinopathy and the team is being careful not to aggravate the condition, tweets John Hollinger of The Athletic.

G League Notes: K. Brown, Nets, Djurisic, Pacers, Cavs, Suns

October 27th, 2024 at 7:48pm CST by Luke Adams

After being waived by Indiana’s NBA team earlier this month, Kendall Brown won’t suit up for the Pacers‘ G League squad this season either. The Long Island Nets announced in a press release on Saturday that they’ve acquired Brown’s returning rights from the Indiana Mad Ants in exchange for the returning rights to guard Au’Diese Toney, a 2025 second-round pick, and a 2026 first-rounder.

Brown was the 48th overall pick in the 2022 draft, but played sparingly in his first two professional seasons with the Pacers, appearing in just 21 games and logging 103 total minutes at the NBA level. The 6’7″ swingman had a far more substantial role in the G League, where he put up 17.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 2.8 assists in 34.1 minutes per contest across 36 total outings for the Mad Ants last season.

Brown is one of several players with NBA experience who is part of Long Island’s training camp roster, which the team announced on Sunday (via Twitter). That group of former NBA players also includes A.J. Lawson, Amari Bailey, Colin Castleton, and former NBA lottery pick Killian Hayes.

Here are a few more notes from around the G League:

As expected, Hawks forward Nikola Djurisic, the No. 43 overall pick in this year’s draft, signed a G League contract and will open the season with the College Park Skyhawks while he recovers from offseason foot surgery. He said during Sunday’s media day that he’s started doing on-court work but isn’t taking contact yet and is still doing 1-on-0 drills, tweets Kevin Chouinard of Hawks.com. Atlanta will continue to control Djurisic’s NBA rights, so he’s essentially a draft-and-stash player who’s playing domestically rather than in a league overseas.
The Indiana Mad Ants formally announced their training camp roster on Sunday (via Twitter). The Pacers‘ G League affiliate includes former NBA players like swingman Dakota Mathias, forward Cameron McGriff, and former No. 3 overall pick Jahlil Okafor.
The Cleveland Charge (the Cavaliers‘ affiliate) has officially announced its coaching staff and its training camp roster for the coming season. First-year head coach Chris Darnell will lead a group that includes former NBAers Jacob Gilyard, Chandler Hutchison, and Zhaire Smith, among others.
Veteran NBA forward Mamadi Diakite and former second-round pick Cassius Stanley are among the headliners on the first training camp roster announced (via Twitter) by the Valley Suns, who are embarking upon their first year in the G League.